JPH04328618A - Memory card connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent the thermal deformation in a reflow soldering treatment by attaining the handling with the use of a sucking board. CONSTITUTION:The front edge of each contact member 20 held by a holding member 10 is protruded over the front face side of the member 10. Thus a contact pin part is formed and inserted into the pin slot of a memory card inserted to a case member 30. Meanwhile a mounting part is formed by protruding the rear end of the member 20 to the rear face side of the member 10. The mounting part is bonded onto the surface of a printed board. Then the member 30 is attached to the member 10 freely attachably/detachably in a state where the member 10 holding the member 20 is attached to the printed board.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

[Industrial Application Field] The present invention is mounted on a printed circuit board to removably receive a memory card (also referred to as an IC memory card or simply an IC card), and electrically connects the memory card to a circuit on the printed circuit board. This invention relates to a memory card connector used for.

0002

2. Description of the Related Art Recently, as a storage medium for small computers (for example, notebook type computers, laptop type computers, electronic notebooks, etc.), as shown in FIG.
A memory card 90 with a built-in IC and approximately the size of a business card has come into use. This memory card 90 is detachably attached to a printed circuit board constituting a computer via a connector, and a plurality of pin insertion holes 91 into which connector pins are inserted are formed in the rear end surface 90a of the memory card 90. There is.

An example of a conventional memory card connector is shown in FIG. 11, and this connector 93 is composed of a housing 94 made of an insulating material and a plurality of contacts 96 aligned and held by the housing 94. As shown in FIG. 12, which shows a cross section taken along the arrow B-B, the housing 94 is formed in a box shape with an open front, and is adapted to receive the memory card 90 in its internal space 94a. Note that the left and right sides of the housing 94 protrude forward to form a guide portion 95 having a guide groove 95a for inserting a memory card. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 12, each contact 96 is held at the center by the housing 94, and has a front end protruding into the internal space 94a of the housing 94 to form a contact pin part 96a, and a rear end of the contact pin part 96a of the housing 94. It protrudes rearward to form a mount portion 96b.

The connector 93 having such a structure is fixed on the printed circuit board 99 with bolts or the like, and in this state, the mounting portions 96b of the contacts 96 are reflow soldered to the corresponding wiring pattern on the printed circuit board 99, and the surface is fixed. The mount is bonded. The memory card 90 is attached to the connector 93 attached to the printed circuit board 99 by inserting it from the rear end surface 90a side in the direction shown by arrow A in the figure. By this insertion, the contact pin portions 96a of the contacts 96 enter the corresponding pin insertion holes 91, and are electrically connected.

[0005]

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] Incidentally, when attaching such a connector to a printed circuit board, this is often automated. In this automation, the connector is often handled using a suction cup, but in the case of the conventional connector 93 as described above, there is a problem in that handling using such a suction cup is difficult. This is because, since the housing 94 and the contacts 96 are integrally constructed, the weight of the connector 93 often exceeds the lifting limit of the suction cup. Furthermore, even if it is possible to lift the housing 94 with a suction cup, if a suction cup is attached to the top surface of the housing 94 and the housing 94 is lifted, the contact 96 is made of metal and has a larger specific gravity than the resin housing 94, so the contact 96 This is because it will be lifted with the side on which it is placed lowered and tilted.

[0006] In order to automate the attachment of the connector 93, it is possible to grip and handle it using a chuck, but it is necessary to manufacture a special chuck according to the shape and size of the connector. There is a problem. In other words, in the case of handling with a suction cup, handling can be performed regardless of the shape of the connector as long as there is a surface that the suction cup can stick to, making it highly versatile.However, in the case of handling with a chuck, there is a special surface that matches the type of connector. There is a problem in that it requires a lot of equipment and has low versatility.

Furthermore, when attaching the connector 93 to the printed circuit board 99, surface mount bonding is often performed in which the mount portion 96b of each contact 96 is reflow soldered to the wiring pattern. The housing 94 also needs to be heated, and the housing 94, especially the guide part 9
Since the wall thickness of the part 5 is thin, there is also a problem that this part may be deformed by receiving heat during reflow soldering.

[0008] In view of the above-mentioned problems, the present invention has a structure that allows handling using a suction cup and that does not cause deformation due to heat during reflow soldering when surface mount bonding is performed. Its purpose is to provide memory card connectors.

[0009]

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve such an object, the present invention includes a holding block made of an insulating material,
A memory card connector is constituted by a plurality of contact members aligned and held by the holding block and a case member having a memory card insertion guide portion and detachably attached to the holding block. The front end of each contact member held by the holding block is made to protrude into the case member from the front side of the holding block to form a contact pin portion, and this contact pin portion is used to hold the memory card inserted into the case member. In addition to being inserted into the pin insertion hole, the rear end of each contact member is made to protrude to the rear side of the holding block to form a mount part, and this mount part is connected to a surface mount joint or a through hole on a printed circuit board. It is press-fitted and can be installed. Further, the case member is configured to be detachably attached to the holding block while the holding block holding the contact member is attached to the printed circuit board in this manner.

0010

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The memory card connector according to the present invention is comprised of a resin holding block 10 holding a large number of contact members 20 in alignment, and a case member 30 attached to this holding block 10. The holding block 10 holding the contact member 20 is attached to a printed circuit board, and the case member 30 is attached to this holding block 10 and is fixed to the printed circuit board by a bolt inserted into a bolt hole 33a.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4 to 7, the holding block 10 holds a large number of contact members 20 in an aligned state at its center. In this held state, the front end of the contact member 20 projects forward in an aligned manner from the front surface 10a of the holding block 10 to form a contact pin portion 21, and the rear end extends from the rear surface 10a of the holding block 10.
A mount portion 22 is formed by a portion that projects rearward from 0b, extends downward, and faces downward. The contact members 20 are held in two rows, one above the other, by a holding block, and the upper contact member 20 and the lower contact member 20 have different lengths in the downward direction at their rear ends, but the length in the front-back direction ( Front and rear length on plan view)
are all formed identically.

By the way, there is a standard that defines the shape of the connection part of a memory card, and according to this standard, the contact member 20
The position of the contact pin portion 21 is also determined as shown in FIG. Specifically, the contact pin portions 21a at both ends and the center protrude the most and are used for power supply, and the contact pin portion 21a on the lower side second from the left in the figure
1b and the second upper contact pin part 21 from the right
b is the most recessed and is used for ground use,
The remaining contact pin portion 21c is used for signals. Note that, as described above, since the length of each contact member 20 in the front-rear direction is the same, the holding block front surface 1 of the contact pin portions 21a, 21b, and 21c as described above is the same.
Depending on the difference in protrusion from 0a, the holding block rear surface 10b of the corresponding mount parts 22a, 22b, 22c
The amount of protrusion is also different as shown in the figure.

As shown in detail in FIG. 2(A), locking arms 1 projecting rearward are provided at both left and right ends of the holding block 10.
1 is formed, and an engagement groove 13 extending rearward from the front side is formed on both left and right side surfaces of the holding block 10, and a locking hole 15 is formed at the rear of the engagement groove 13. The case member 30 is attached to the holding block 10 using the engagement groove 13 and the locking hole 15 as described later. Mounting member attachment grooves 14 are also formed on both left and right side surfaces of the holding block 10, which extend across the engagement groove 13 and from the upper surface side to the lower surface side. A metal mount member 25 having a shape shown in FIG. 2(B) is attached within this mount member attachment groove 14. Mount member 2
5 is installed in the mounting groove 14, its side surface 2
5a is flush with or recessed from the bottom surface of the engagement groove 13 formed in the holding block 10, and its lower surface 25b is located on the same surface as the lower surface of the mount portion 22 of the contact member 20. It has become.

The contact member 10 in which a large number of contact members 20 are aligned and held as described above is mounted on the printed circuit board 50 (see FIG. 8). This attachment is performed by reflow soldering the mount portion 22 of the contact member 20 and surface mount bonding. However, the mount portion 22 of the contact member 20 is a thin metal member, and it is difficult to ensure sufficient mounting strength only by reflow soldering this portion. For this reason, the lower surface 25b of the mount member 25 is also reflow soldered to the printed circuit board 50 to obtain sufficient mounting strength.

In this way, the reflow soldering is performed before the case member 30 is attached, and the case member 30 is not exposed to the heat of this soldering, so there is no problem of thermal deformation of the case member 30. . Further, in the case of automating this attachment, it is sufficient to transport only the holding block 10 holding the contact member 20 onto the printed circuit board 50, and there is no risk of exceeding the weight limit even if a suction cup is used. Furthermore, the suction cup holds the upper surface of the holding block 10 by suction, and the holding block 10 holds the center part of the contact member 20, so that the weight balance between the parts suctioned and held by the suction cup is good, and the holding block 10 can be held horizontally. Therefore, in this example, it is easy to handle the holding block using a suction cup, and it is easy to automate the work of attaching it to the printed circuit board 50.

After the holding block 10 holding the contact member 20 as described above is attached to the printed circuit board 50, the case member 30 is attached to this holding block 10. As shown in FIG. 3, the case member 30 includes a body portion 31 having a card insertion space 31a opened at the front.
and guide grooves 32 extending forward from both left and right sides of the body portion 31 and facing each other and serving as guides for inserting a memory card.
The insertion guide portion 32 includes an insertion guide portion 32 having a shape a, and protrusion portions 33 extending rearward from both left and right sides of the body portion 31. Guide groove 3
Reference numeral 2 serves as a guide for inserting the left and right sides of the memory card 90 into the guide grooves 32a and guiding the memory card 90 in the direction of arrow A in FIG.

A slit 34a extending forward from the rear end is formed on the inner side surface of both protrusions 33, thereby forming an elastic arm 34. The elastic arm 34 is formed to have a thickness that allows it to be elastically deformed from side to side with respect to its base. An engagement rail 35 extending back and forth is formed on the inner surface of each elastic arm 34, and a locking protrusion 36 is formed at the rear of the engagement rail 35. For this reason,
The case member 30 is attached from the front to the holding block 10 fixed to the printed circuit board 50 so that the engagement rail 35 is inserted into the engagement groove 13. At this time, the locking protrusion 36 of the case member 30 rides on the bottom surface of the engagement groove 13, but the elastic arm 34 elastically deforms outward from its base to allow this. When the engagement rail 35 completely enters the engagement groove 13, the locking protrusion 36 reaches a position facing the locking hole 15, and the locking hole 36 is locked by the elastic force of the elastic arm 34. It enters into the hole 15 and the two engage. This engagement results in
The case member 30 is locked and held in a state where it is attached to the holding block 10. Note that after this, the case member 30
The case member 30 is securely fixed to the printed circuit board 50 by the bolt inserted into the bolt insertion hole 33a.

The memory card 90 is connected to the rear end surface 9 of the connector attached to the printed circuit board 50 as described above.
Attach it by inserting it from the 0a side in the direction shown by arrow A in FIGS. 1 and 8. At this time, the left and right guide grooves 32a guide the memory card 90 to smoothly insert it into the card insertion space 31a. By this insertion, the contact pin portions 21 of the contacts 20 enter the corresponding pin insertion holes 91, and are electrically connected. Moreover, the memory card 90 can be removed from this connector by pulling out the memory card 90 in the direction opposite to the A direction.

In order to facilitate the removal of the memory card 90, an ejector 47 may be provided on the side of the case member 40, as shown in FIG. This ejector 47 has an eject button 48, and when the eject button 48 is manually pressed, an internal lever (not shown) pushes the memory card 90 outward. The case member 40 having such an ejector 47 also has protrusions 43 extending rearward from both left and right sides of the body portion 41, similarly to the case member 30 shown in FIGS. 1 and 3. Furthermore, elastic arms 44 are formed by slits 44a on the inner surfaces of both protrusions 43, and engagement rails 4 extending back and forth are formed on the inner surfaces of each elastic arm 44.
5 is formed, and a locking protrusion 46 is formed at the rear of this engagement rail 45.

Therefore, a case member 40 can be attached to the holding block 10 instead of the case member 30. That is, in the case of the connector of the present invention, with respect to the holding block 10 holding the contact member 20,
Any of the different case members 30 or 40 can be attached. Therefore, after the holding block 10 holding the contact member 20 is surface-mounted to the printed circuit board 50, any of the case members 30 and 40 can be attached to this holding block 10.
Furthermore, after one of the case members is attached, it can be removed and replaced with another case member.

In the above example, the contact member 20
The mount portion 22 is surface mount bonded to the wiring pattern of the printed circuit board 50 by reflow soldering, but the bonding of the mount portion 22 is not limited to surface mount, and can be bonded to the wiring pattern of the printed circuit board 50 by using a through hole formed in the printed circuit board. Alternatively, the mount portion may be inserted into the mount portion and bonded by flow soldering.

[0022]

[Effects of the Invention] As explained above, according to the present invention,
The front end of each contact member held by the holding block protrudes from the front side of the holding block into the case member to form a contact pin portion, and this contact pin portion is used for pin insertion of a memory card inserted into the case member. The contact member is inserted into the hole, and the rear end of each contact member is made to protrude toward the rear side of the holding block to form a mount portion, and this mount portion is bonded onto the printed circuit board. The structure is such that the case member can be removably attached to the holding block while the holding block holding the contact member is attached to the printed circuit board, so only the holding block holding the contact member can be attached to the printed circuit board. It can be done independently and can be handled using a suction cup, making it easy to automate the work of attaching it to a printed circuit board.

Furthermore, even when the contact member is surface mounted to the printed circuit board, the case member is attached after the holding block holding the contact member is reflow soldered to the printed circuit board. Since the case member does not receive heat for soldering, it is possible to prevent the problem of thermal deformation of the case member.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a memory card connector according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a holding block, a contact member held by the holding block, and a mount member that constitute the connector.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a case member constituting the connector.

FIG. 4 is a plan view showing a holding block holding the contact member.

FIG. 5 is a front view showing a holding block holding the contact member.

FIG. 6 is a side view showing a holding block holding the contact member.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view showing a holding block holding the contact member.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view showing a state in which the memory card connector is attached to a printed circuit board.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a different example of a case member constituting the connector.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a memory card.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing a conventional memory card connector.

FIG. 12 is a sectional view showing a state in which a conventional memory card connector is attached to a printed circuit board.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 Holding block 11 Locking arm 13 Engagement groove 15 Locking hole 20 Contact member 22 Mount part 25 Mounting member 30 Case member 32 Insertion guide part 34 Elastic arm 35 Engagement rail 36 Locking protrusion 47 Ejector 50 Printed circuit board

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A memory card connector that is attached to a printed circuit board and receives a memory card in a freely insertable and removable manner, the connector comprising: a holding block made of an insulating material; a plurality of contact members aligned and held by the holding block;
a case member that has an insertion guide portion for the memory card and is detachably attached to the holding block, and the front end of each contact member held by the holding block is inserted into the case from the front side of the holding block A contact pin portion is formed that protrudes into the member and enters a pin insertion hole of the memory card inserted into the case member, and a rear end of each of the contact members protrudes toward the rear side of the holding block to form a contact pin portion that protrudes into the pin insertion hole of the memory card inserted into the case member. The case member is detachably attached to the holding block in a state in which a mount portion is formed to be bonded to the printed circuit board and the holding block holding the contact member is attached to the printed circuit board. Characteristic memory card connector.